Malegaon Blast Case: Lt. Col. Prasad Shrikant Purohit walks out of jail after nine years

New Delhi : Prime accused in Malegaon blast case and suspended Lt. Col. Prasad Shrikant Purohit walked out of jail after nine years. The Supreme Court on Monday granted him bail.

Granting bail, a bench of Justice R.K. Agrawal and Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre said: "In our considered opinion, there are material contradictions in the charge sheets filed by the ATS Mumbai and the NIA which are required to be tested at the time of trial and this court cannot pick or choose one version over the other."

Pointing out that grant or refusal of bail was within the court's discretion, Justice Agrawal, speaking for the bench, said: "The grant or denial is regulated, to a large extent, by the facts and circumstances of each particular case. But at the same time, right to bail is not to be denied merely because of the sentiments of the community against the accused."

The Malegaon bomb blast case was initially investigated by the Anti-Terrorism Squad, Mumbai, before it was handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA).